Qanchispatana: What If Life Planning Could Feel More Like Listening?
How planning our Peru retreat opened my eyes to an inspiring ancient practice
Have you ever wondered why traditional life planning can feel so... forced? Like you're trying to squeeze yourself into a predetermined shape that doesn't quite fit?
There's a word in the Quechua language that's been making me curious: Qanchispatana—a practice of mapping your life in harmony with the earth, cosmos, and your own inner knowing. What if this ancient wisdom might offer something our modern planning methods are missing?
Beyond the Vision Board: What Indigenous Wisdom Teaches About Life Design
Many of us have tried the usual approaches to life planning. We've made vision boards, set SMART goals, and created five-year plans. But what if there's something deeper available? Something that doesn't require us to have all the answers before we begin?
Qanchispatana isn't about creating a perfect roadmap or following someone else's blueprint for success. It's about learning to listen—to the earth, to the cosmos, and to the wisdom you already carry within you.
The Four Questions That Could Change Everything
In this practice, four elements of the natural world become guides, each offering a different filter to look at our life:
Pachamama (Mother Earth) asks:
Where do you feel most alive?
Not where you think you should be, but where your body actually feels connected and present.
Inti (Sun) wonders:
What vision lights you up from the inside?
What makes you feel energized rather than drained?
Killa (Moon) inquires:
What does your intuition already know?
What quiet wisdom have you been carrying that you haven't fully trusted yet?
The Apus (Mountain Spirits) hold space:
What stories are you ready to tell?
What experiences are calling to you?
What Makes This Different from Traditional Life Coaching?
I love how this ancient practice seems to work backwards from typical personal development approaches. Instead of starting with external goals and working toward them, Qanchispatana begins with what's already there - right inside of you.
Maybe your morning movement becomes a check-in with yourself and the earth. Or maybe life mapping feels more like a little chat with what you already know deep down on the inside. Connections might start feeling like breadcrumbs on a path that's right there for you.
The Art of Ceremonial Living
Another thing I love about this? What if your daily life could feel more like ceremony and less like a series of tasks to check off? This practice invites us to consider how we might weave meaning into the ordinary moments. I’m all about making meaning and I love this!
Your morning coffee might become a moment of gratitude to the earth. Your bedtime thoughts could become a conversation with the moon. Your decisions might be guided by what feels aligned rather than what looks good on paper.
Integrating Ancient Wisdom with Modern Life
This isn't about abandoning your calendar or throwing away your goals. It's about approaching them with a different quality of attention. What happens when we plan from a place of deep listening rather than forcing?
Some people find that their to-do lists become more intuitive. Others discover that their career decisions feel more aligned with their values. Many notice that their relationships deepen when they're more connected to their own inner knowing. That all sounds good to me!
The Land Where It All Began
There's something powerful about experiencing practices in the places where they originated. The mountains of Peru hold stories that our bodies remember even when our minds don’t know. The earth there carries a different frequency—one that many visitors describe as deeply nourishing and clarifying.
If you're curious about exploring Qanchispatana in its native landscape, we're planning an adventure to Peru next October during the dry season, when the mountain skies are at their clearest and the ancient practices feel most alive. It's designed for those who want to experience this wisdom not as tourists, but as students of an ancient way of being.
Your Invitation to Explore
What if the path forward isn't about having all the answers, but about learning to ask better questions? What if your next steps don't need to be perfect, but simply aligned with what's true for you right now?
Qanchispatana offers a different way—one that honors both your human desire for direction and your soul's need for authenticity. It's not about following someone else's map, but about learning to read the signs that are already all around you.
Curious about what you might discover when you start listening differently?
check out this super cute triple at our retreat center in Peru! (1 left!)
Ready to explore how ancient wisdom just might inform your life?
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